Registering for the APN is just the beginning. We engage on a deeper level with APN Partners who advance through the tiers, so don't stop here. Focus on making your products in General Availability on AWS and getting AWS Customers to invest in your solution.

This is only the first step of your journey, and we recommend you check out the steps to advance to the Standard tier.

Build a solution that follows the AWS Well-Architected Framework and follow best practices for security, high availability, support, costs, and automation on AWS. Doing so will help you understand how to architect your product in a way that is secure and compliant.

Want more information on building a solution that follows the AWS Well-Architected Framework? Check out AWS Answers to see repositories of instructional documents and solutions developed by AWS architects to help you build and grow your businesses on the AWS Cloud.

The AWS Business Builder provides a portfolio of go-to-market resources to help software companies of all sizes connect with customers and grow their businesses. Utilize the build resources to leverage the AWS Partner Network to build your software business globally. You can then expand your reach and generate more qualified leads with our Marketing Programs. Finally, the business builder has programs to help you accelerate customer time to value.

Once you have built a solution that is generally available on AWS, you can start building your customer base. In order to advance to Standard tier, you must gain two customer references on AWS. It's very important that you establish credibility with your existing customer base, and demonstrate how your solution has helped them meet their business needs.

Need a little help? Learn how to build your AWS-based business in this whitepaper.

Developer+ Level Support offers resources for customers and APN Partners testing or doing early development on AWS, as well as any customers or APN Partners who:

Want access to guidance and technical support

Are exploring how to quickly put AWS to work

Use AWS for non-production workloads or applications

You can obtain Developer+ Level Support on this page, and it will be reflected in your AWS Account and APN Portal.

Use the following checklist to confirm that you meet all the requirements for the Standard tier.

If you comply with the requirements, then congratulations! You have completed everything you need to apply to become a Standard tier APN Partner. Now you can apply to upgrade. To apply, log into the APN Portal, go to your Partner Scorecard, and click “Apply for Upgrade”, found at the top of the page. A member of the APN Team will be notified of your submission and will be in touch with next steps.

If you're not yet in compliance with all of the requirements for the Standard tier, we encourage you to keep working. Standard tier APN Partners receive a number of additional benefits, so don't stop now!

Looking for all the APN Technology Partner Benefits & Requirements on one table? Click here.

At the Standard tier, you gain access to a number of additional benefits to help you build your customer base. You're able to participate in additional APN Partner Programs to differentiate your business, and you become eligible for a number of funding opportunities. You also have the opportunity to take advantage of a wide range of marketing resources through APN Marketing Central.

Proof-of-Concepts: At the Standard tier, you become eligible for the AWS Proof of Concept (POC) Program, which is designed to facilitate and help accelerate AWS customer projects.

Innovation Sandbox: This benefit extends AWS Promotional Credits towards the development of new offerings on AWS and can help you as you look to offer Free Trials of your solution to prospective customers.

Access to APN Marketing Central: Are you looking for resources to help you get started as you build a robust go-to-market strategy on AWS? Look no further than APN Marketing Central!APN Marketing Central provides a wealth of marketing tools and resources that enable you to generate demand for your services and solutions on AWS.

Eligible for AWS Event Sponsorship: At the Standard tier, you are eligible to sponsor AWS Events, including re:Invent and AWS Global Summits. Want to learn more about how to take advantage of the AWS Sponsorship opportunities? Click here.

Use of APN Logo: Once you reach the Standard tier, you gain access to an official APN logo, to use on your marketing collateral. Having an APN Logo demonstrates that you are a higher tier APN Partner.

Company Profile in the AWS Partner Directory: At the Standard tier, you are able to create an AWS Partner Directory listing. The AWS Partner Directory is one of the most effective ways for your firm to surface to prospective customers.

Looking for all the APN Technology Partner Benefits & Requirements on one table? Click here.

Becoming a Standard tier APN Partner opens up a number of Go-To-Market opportunities you can take advantage of to help you grow your customer base on AWS. You also gain official recognition as an APN Partner through the ability to list your firm in the Partner Solution Finder and through your access to an official APN logo. But don't stop here.

While at the Standard tier, we recommend that you focus on how you can innovate with your own solutions and move up to the Advanced tier.

Prior to moving to Advanced tier, we want to ensure your solution follows architectural best practices for designing reliable, secure, efficient, and cost-effective systems in the cloud. This AWS Well-Architected Framework will help you pass the technical validation needed to continue to Advance tier.

To qualify for the Advanced tier, you must demonstrate your long-term investment in being an APN Partner by investing in staff dedicated to managing your AWS relationship. The Advanced tier requires you have a dedicated Partner Alliance Manager on staff.

Additionally, you must develop a comprehensive AWS Partner Practice Plan. You can download a practice plan template via the APN Portal.

To qualify for the Advanced tier, you must meet minimum direct and influenced AWS billings average. Advanced tier APN Partners are required to achieve a $50,000 minimum direct and/or influenced AWS revenue average over a three-month period.

To increase your AWS direct and influenced revenue, we recommend that you participate in the programs and marketing opportunities available to you at the Standard tier. Doing so will increase your exposure to AWS customers, and will provide you with more opportunities to grow your AWS-based business.

Alternatively, you can fulfill this requirement by becoming an approved AWS Competency partner, which demonstrates your proven expertise and deep customer success in a particular area of focus on AWS.

Utilizing existing customer references is one of the most effective ways to reach new customers, and to demonstrate your success on AWS to AWS teams. As you continue to build a successful AWS-based business, be proactive about reaching out to your existing customers who you feel are strong references for your firm. Examples of references you can pursue include a testimonial for your website, a formal case study, a speaking opportunity at an event, or a customer profile for your blog.

To become an Advanced tier APN Partner, you must obtain six customer reference on AWS. Did you know that you can access a number of case study templates through APN Marketing Central, to help you as you look to build your reference base? Click here to learn more.

The Business+ Level Support plan offers resources for customers running production workloads on AWS as well as any customer or APN Partner who:

Run one or more applications in production environments

Have multiple services activated, or use key services extensively

Depend on their business solutions to be available, scalable, and secure

The Business+ Level Support plan includes Trusted Advisor full checks, infrastructure event management, architecture support, AWS support API, and more.

You can upgrade to Business+ Level Support on this page, and it will be reflected in your AWS Account and in the APN Portal.

Use the following checklist to see if you meet all the requirements for Advanced tier.

If you comply with the requirements, then congratulations! You have completed everything you need to apply to become an Advanced tier APN Partner! Now you can apply to upgrade. You can do this by logging into the APN Portal, going to the Partner Scorecard, and clicking “Apply for Upgrade” found at the top of the page. A member of the APN Team will be notified of your submission and will be in touch with next steps.

Looking for all the APN Technology Partner Benefits & Requirements on one table? Click here.

Once you qualify for the Advanced tier, you gain many more opportunities to differentiate your firm to prospective customers. For example, Advanced tier APN Partners are eligible to apply for the AWS Competency Program, AWS Customer-Facing Webinars, and an AWS-Written Case Study. Some of the most effective Programs we offer to help customers find the right partners to help them meet their business needs on AWS.

AWS Competency Program: The AWS Competency Program is designed to highlight APN Partners who have demonstrated technical proficiency and proven customer success in specialized solution areas, verticals, and use cases.

Eligibility for Integrated Partner Campaigns: These comprehensive multi-touch integrated demand generation campaigns provide an opportunity for you to co-brand digital marketing assets, social media, webinars, and outbound calling to generate more qualified opportunities for your firm. Note that you also need to hold an AWS Competency to be eligible for this program.

Eligibility for an AWS-Written Case Study: At the Advanced tier, you are eligible to be featured in an AWS-written case study or AWS-produced partner success video. To see previous case studies, visit the Partner Success Page.

Featured Company Profile in AWS Partner Directory: Advanced Tier Technology APN Partners are featured in the AWS Partner Directory and prominently throughout different AWS webpages.

By becoming an Advanced tier APN Partner, you demonstrate that you have built a strong AWS-based business. Continue to differentiate and stand out to AWS customers, and build a robust go-to-market strategy with AWS. Establish your firm’s thought leadership through event sponsorship, blogging, social media, presentations, and whitepapers. Join programs that will help you further define your niche on AWS, such as the AWS Competency Program.

MicroStrategy is an Advanced Technology Partner in the AWS Partner Network (APN), and is all-in on AWS. Hugh Owen, Senior Vice President of Product Marketing at MicroStrategy, speaks about why the company chose to go all-in on AWS, and some of the benefits MicroStrategy has gained being an APN Partner.

Okta is an Advanced AWS Partner Network (APN) member, and an AWS Security Competency Partner. Hector Aguilar, CTO, and Allen Clark, VP of Partnerships, discuss Okta's decision to build its identity management solution on AWS. They also discuss the value the company has found being an AWS Security Competency Partner, and integrating new AWS services, such as AWS Key Management Service (KMS), into the Okta offering.

Olga Lagunova, Vice President of Software Engineering at Pitney Bowes, an Advanced APN Technology Partner, discusses how working as an APN Partner drives innovation at Pitney Bowes and helps the company bring additional value to its end customers.

Karl Van den Bergh, Vice President of Product and Cloud at TIBCO Software, discusses the ways in which TIBCO has been able to reduce costs by over 50 percent and deliver software to market in a much faster time frame by working with AWS. TIBCO is an Advanced APN Technology Partner, and is all-in on AWS.